“Please, No Plus Ones”
an exploration in peace-led decision-making published in Already There
I explore the tension surrounding everyday decision-making by personifying the common emotions that arise when we come to a fork in the road.
Playing out on the stage of allegory, emotions like Anxiety, Fear, Numbness, and Peace are cast to embody the messages these feelings send.
This story is featured in Already There, a print-only publication. Here is a short excerpt:
I perked up, seeing Fear standing in the middle of the room with arms crossed. Hair cut straight and close, mustache meticulously curled at the edges, he is the quickest emotion to make sense.
His ability to make the points that give room to overwhelm is paralyzing but typically convinces me that staying put and stepping back are safer than moving in any other direction.
“Just don’t go.” He offered as if it were obvious. [….] “It’ll be awful, and they won’t care that you bail. Let’s say we’re sick, we’ll be out of town, whatever. I don’t mind robbing you of this if it saves us from discomfort.”
All at once, I felt the hands of Anxiety, Numbness, and Fear reach out to me, all promising to lead me down their idea of the safest path to the fork in my road.
Suddenly, a final voice blew gently through the room. What felt less like an emotion and more like a presence to receive, Peace sat next to me on the couch.